The Cheyenne
The Cheyenne was Frederic Remington’s sixth sculpture and his most daring design. With all feet off the ground, the galloping horse “burns the air,” as described by Remington in a letter to his friend and author of western novels Owen Wister. While other artists stabilized equine subjects by placing at least one foot on the ground, Remington floats all four, thus capturing the horse mid-stride to create the illusion of movement.
For support, he sculpted a buffalo hide used as a saddle that slides down the horse’s side and trails on the ground. Such an ingenious method of disguising the support demonstrates Remington’s mastery of design and his creativity in approaching the challenges of casting a three-dimensional sculpture in bronze.
The title, The Cheyenne, gives the tribal affiliation of the rider, but the rest of the narrative has been left to the viewer’s imagination. He could be in pursuit of startled prey, calling back to his fellow hunters to excite fervor for the chase, or perhaps he is the prey, and his head turns slightly to look at his pursuer. However, this sculpture has more to tell the viewer than a simple narrative, and its greater significance may be understood with a little insight into how Remington designed and created this work.
This Remington piece is made of a solid bronze casting on a heavy marble base with name plate.
The Cheyenne was Frederic Remington’s sixth sculpture and his most daring design. With all feet off the ground, the galloping horse “burns the air,” as described by Remington in a letter to his friend and author of western novels Owen Wister. While other artists stabilized equine subjects by placing at least one foot on the ground, Remington floats all four, thus capturing the horse mid-stride to create the illusion of movement.
For support, he sculpted a buffalo hide used as a saddle that slides down the horse’s side and trails on the ground. Such an ingenious method of disguising the support demonstrates Remington’s mastery of design and his creativity in approaching the challenges of casting a three-dimensional sculpture in bronze.
The title, The Cheyenne, gives the tribal affiliation of the rider, but the rest of the narrative has been left to the viewer’s imagination. He could be in pursuit of startled prey, calling back to his fellow hunters to excite fervor for the chase, or perhaps he is the prey, and his head turns slightly to look at his pursuer. However, this sculpture has more to tell the viewer than a simple narrative, and its greater significance may be understood with a little insight into how Remington designed and created this work.
This Remington piece is made of a solid bronze casting on a heavy marble base with name plate.
The Cheyenne was Frederic Remington’s sixth sculpture and his most daring design. With all feet off the ground, the galloping horse “burns the air,” as described by Remington in a letter to his friend and author of western novels Owen Wister. While other artists stabilized equine subjects by placing at least one foot on the ground, Remington floats all four, thus capturing the horse mid-stride to create the illusion of movement.
For support, he sculpted a buffalo hide used as a saddle that slides down the horse’s side and trails on the ground. Such an ingenious method of disguising the support demonstrates Remington’s mastery of design and his creativity in approaching the challenges of casting a three-dimensional sculpture in bronze.
The title, The Cheyenne, gives the tribal affiliation of the rider, but the rest of the narrative has been left to the viewer’s imagination. He could be in pursuit of startled prey, calling back to his fellow hunters to excite fervor for the chase, or perhaps he is the prey, and his head turns slightly to look at his pursuer. However, this sculpture has more to tell the viewer than a simple narrative, and its greater significance may be understood with a little insight into how Remington designed and created this work.
This Remington piece is made of a solid bronze casting on a heavy marble base with name plate.